My Blog

My friend Evan introduced me to the concept of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, as well as two books that introduce the subject.

Seeing as I have a keen interest in mental health optimisation, this concept is very appealing to me.

What is CBT?

From the Wikipedia entry:

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psycho-social intervention^[1][2] that aims to improve mental health.^[3] CBT focuses on challenging and changing unhelpful cognitive distortions (e.g. thoughts, beliefs, and attitudes) and behavior, improving emotional regulation,^[2][4] and the development of personal coping strategies that target solving current problems

Wikipedia

More to come!

A new month came and went (10 days ag

A new month came and went (10 days ago!) You know what that means: a new batch Audible credits!

I have added Rich Dad Poor Dad: 20th Anniversary Edition to my library. 

Now that the hard part is over with, it is just a case of listening to it and collecting my thoughts. 

Well, not really – you just sit and type for a while. Sometimes interesting ideas come out, in theory at least. I have been trying to keep a diary as well, and it is going no better at all!

It all boils down to time-management: making the time to do what is important.

The last couple of weeks I have been feeling very out of control with my time, especially at work. Then, when I got home I just collapsed into a heap and steeled myself against the coming day.

A few years ago I found myself sitting in the Jenni Button shop in Cavendish Square.

I was just minding my own business while my girlfriend was trying on a new dress for a social event.

Out of the blue, a gentleman started a conversation. I guess that’s the sort of things boyfriends and husbands do to pass the time. I usually just play Soduko.

After some introductions and pleasantries, he invited me to join him at a seminar for an exciting business opportunity. Turns out that was for Amway.

I am pretty sure I had heard of Robert Kiyosaki before then, but he was referenced quite heavily in that presentation and it left something of an impression. Given Amway’s reputation and the various opinions about whether it is a scam or a pyramid scheme or not, his linking to that organisation was curious.

Fast-forward a few years and I came across online advertising for a wealth seminar that Mr Kiyosaki was presenting in Cape Town. One thing that stuck out in my mind was the cost of the V-VIP package and one of the perks – the opportunity to have our photo taken with Rober Kiyosaki.

So that got me thinking – this fellow is full of it! But to give him a fair shake I figure as my first review for this new blog I will finally put this question to rest: Is Robert Kiyosaki full of shit, or does Rich Dad Poor Dad have any merit?

Trying to get my ideas out of my head and onto this page is a harder process than I thought it would be.

Let us begin with an example:

Like many people who have reached their middle age, I have become interested in running a marathon. I have no idea why marathon running and mid-life crises go hand-in-hand like peanut butter and jam, but they seem to.

So of course, being a marathon runner weaves itself into my narrative of what it means to be successful. I can bearly shuffle much more than 10km at a pace that would make a turtle blush and am severely overweight. I am an utterly unsuccessful marathon runner.

So, in consolation, I watch a season of The Expanse. The Expanse is a brilliant show – if you enjoy action-sci-fi I highly recommend it – but I digress.

If you look at my actions, watching The Expanse, and compare them to my goal of running a marathon, the problem is obvious. If my goal was to watch The Expanse, then it would be mission accomplished. But it wasn’t!

The issue is that I only focus on that goal of running the marathon now and again. Then I get depressed and move on with my life.

Goals are hard and achieving them is harder. But I suppose they don’t need to be. I just don’t have the right tools.

Key Questions: What do I want? What am I willing to do to get what I want? Success comes from correctly answering those questions.

Of course, I am writing this blog post instead of studying or finishing my work project… So there is that!

Hello!

Welcome to my blog. Thank you very much for dropping by!

This blog is intended to be an accompaniment to my main site (which will eventually be something of an online CV / business card.)

Here I will be jotting down some ideas about what success, my career and other things with more of a professional slant. I also want to review media here that relates to success and professional development.

As an accounting assistant I tend to be quite insulated in my little office, left to my own devices with my invoices and ledgers and communicating primarily with financial reports. Therefore I thought it would a good idea to start this little blog as an outlet to different ideas and communications.

I hope you find something useful and interesting here.